At the close of the war Lt. Col. Van Voorhees was appointed Colonel by brevet by the President "for gallant and meritorious services in the late campaigns in Georgia and the Carolinas."
JOSEPH ESTY, JR., Clerk, enlisted Sept. 26th, 1855, and was elected Secretary of the Company January 14, 1857. July 28th, 1858, he was first put in the line of promotion by being elected fourth Corporal, and so great was his popularity with the Company, and his knowledge of tactics, that within a trifle over four years from the time of his receiving his chevron as fourth Corporal, he was elected and received his commission as second Lieutenant, (Aug. 25th, 1862,) having filled nearly if not all of the intermediate positions. During the Elmira campaign he was with the Company, steadily refusing to accept of any better fare or accommodations, than the men under his charge received.
While at Barracks No. 1, he invariably accompanied his men to the mess house, and prevented many impositions which officers in charge were in the habit of practicing upon soldiers who were obliged to take their rations in that unsavory institution. While the Company were on duty at the rebel prison, no officer did his duty more cheerfully and strictly. He was never known to plead illness to avoid his turn, and the writer of this sketch has, on more than one occasion, known him to take the turn of other officers who plead illness, when he himself was not fit for duty. On one occasion he attended the officer's drill of the Regiment when he was hardly able to leave his tent, and upon the fact being reported to the Colonel, he was peremptorily ordered to his Quarters, to gain the rest which he would not take voluntarily.
No officer in the Regiment stood higher in the estimation of both officers and men, than did Lieut. Esty; and such was the respect of his own Company for him, that upon their return home and the promotion of Captain Blood to the position he now occupies, Lieut. Esty was (Dec. 26th, 1864) elected Captain.
His reluctance to accept the position, showed that he had no aspirations to rise in rank above his fellows, and it was only upon the urgent entreaties of the officers of the Regiment, and his intimate friends, that he was induced to accept the honor thus thrust upon him; and we venture to say, without any fear of detracting from the worthy merits of his predecessors, that no officer has given more time and money to advance the interest of the Company, than has he--a large proportion of the target prizes for the past two years having been procured by him. At the meeting for target practice August 15th, 1865, Captain Esty was presented by the Company with a splendid sword and belt, which cost about $120. The Captain was taken completely by surprise, as he had received no hint of the matter, and his overcharged feelings prevented him from making known to the Company how highly he prized the gift; but his pleasure at receiving was not greater than the happiness of the donors, in thus having an opportunity of demonstrating their feelings toward him.